A Collection of Bethyl Short Stories
by siriusblackheartattack
Summary: Each chapter is a different Bethyl one-shot story - they aren't related - each story is it's own world! This is all fluffy Bethyl stuff! I wanted to keep all of my short stories in one place (I usually just write these on tumblr) - I plan to add to this every time I write a new one-shot! Send me short story prompts if you want to :) (Also I don't own these characters, AMC does).
1. Elevator

**Elevator**

It had been a shitty night – and one of the worst blind dates Beth had ever been on. She had even bothered to dress nicely for the event – but it was all for nothing.

Her best friend Tara had set her up with a guy named Zach. Beth usually didn't go on blind dates – they were always too awkward and strange, but Tara had begged her to try it for once. Maybe Beth had been complaining a little too much about being single lately – but it was so hard to hang out with Tara and her gorgeous girlfriend and not feel a little bit lonely.

Beth should have known from the start that it was going to go badly. Zach had invited her to dinner in one of the fanciest, and most expensive restaurants in Atlanta. Who does that on a blind date, she had thought to herself grumpily, while trying to find something appropriate to wear. She had settled on a cute red cocktail dress she had bought impulsively online a few months back. She had never worn it, but it hugged her figure nicely without being too short. She paired it with some uncomfortable nude strappy heels and some gold bangles – even she had to admit that she looked great, especially with her hair down in loose waves like it was. It turned out that the only good thing about this night had been her outfit.

The restaurant itself had been beautiful, it was at the top of one of the tallest buildings in the city, looking down over the rest of Atlanta, which seemed to sparkle at night. But the food was expensive, so Beth opted for the cheapest soup – she wasn't sure who would be paying the bill. Zach had talked nonstop about himself for hours, never once stopping to ask Beth anything. And he chewed with his mouth open - it was disgusting. By the end of the date, Beth was ready to sprint her way out of the restaurant and over to the elevator to finally be rid of him.

She somehow managed to get out of giving him her number, instead she opted to "find him on Facebook" (Beth didn't have a Facebook). He didn't even walk her to the elevator to get to the ground floor of the building. Instead he said something about needing the restroom and 'it was nice to meeting you, Bethany.' Well, that certainly wasn't her name. Yeesh.

Beth waited for the elevator patiently, looking forward to getting home, snuggling with her cat, and binge watching a few episodes of Game of Thrones to help her forget about this boring date she'd agreed to go on. Her stomach grumbled – that soup hadn't really done much to fill her up. Hopefully the taxi ride home wouldn't be too long.

When the elevator doors finally slid open, Beth was relieved to see no one else inside. She stepped quickly into the space and was about to press the button for the Lobby before a low voice from nearby said "wait up!"

Beth huffed to herself as she pressed the button to keep the doors open. A man clambered quickly into the elevator with her and violently pressed the button to close the doors. Beth caught a whiff of smoke and cologne. She looked at him – wow. If only Zach had looked like this guy. He was clearly someone who worked at the restaurant, on his way home for the night. He had on what looked like a waiter's uniform under a leather jacket. In one hand, he held a motorcycle helmet, and in the other, a bag of what looked like food to go. Beth's stomach rumbled again. The guy looked at her with piercing blue eyes. She blushed and looked down at the floor.

The elevator began to slowly move down – they had a ways to go – the restaurant was on the 34th floor. But somewhere around the 27th floor, it suddenly jolted to a stop. Beth let out a yelp of surprise and the guy next to her had dropped his helmet and pressed his hand to the wall in surprise. They both looked tentatively at each other, unsure about what to do.

"Is it stuck?" Beth practically whispered her question. She hated small spaces, and this was starting to freak her out a little.

The man was still looking at her, wide-eyed. "Dunno, try pressing the lobby button again."

Beth moved a shaky hand to press the button again, keeping a steady hand on one of the elevator walls, just in case it started moving again. She didn't like the idea of being suspended midair in a metallic box with a stranger. Nothing happened. Suddenly, the smell of cigarettes was stronger, and Beth nearly jumped out of her skin when she realized the man in the elevator with her had moved closer to try pressing a different button.

"Oh, sorry," he had said, when she continued to look startled. "Just wanna try to get someone over the speakers…"

She looked over at his hand, which was hovering next to a yellow 'help' button.

"It's okay, my claustrophobia is just acting up, that's all." She smiled at him, as if he was the one who needed reassurance.

He nodded at her. "Try sittin' in the corner over there and takin' a few deep breaths while I figure this out."

It sounded like a good idea, so Beth leaned down, pulled off her heels, and let herself sit back in the other corner of the elevator. She watched as her new companion pressed the button and waited for the line on the other end to ring.

A voice came through what looked like a small speaker next to the elevator buttons.

"Hello?"

"Hey Abraham, it's Dixon, I'm stuck in elevator B with someone from the restaurant – hopin' you could come get us out."

"Oh hey Daryl, I'm sorry man but it might be a little while – we had a blackout and everything went down. Coupla other people are stuck in elevators too, and we're working off a backup generator right now. Might have to get you guys out manually if the power doesn't start working again soon. I'm working with Rick in security right now."

Beth felt the blood drain out of her face. What did 'a little while' mean? She couldn't sit in this metal box for much longer without having a panic attack – enclosed spaces were one of her biggest fears.

The guy, Daryl, must have noticed her starting to panic, because he turned back to the speakers:

"You got a ballpark figure for when you think you can get us out? This lady I'm with isn't doing so hot."

"Sorry man, I don't know any more than you. But we're workin' on it, so sit tight, hopefully it won't be more than 30 minutes."

"Thirty minutes?!"

Beth slapped a hand over her mouth – she hadn't expected to sound so panicky.

"Hey, hey it's okay," Daryl walked over to her side of the elevator and crouched down in front of her. "It shouldn't be too long – the guys who run this building have their shit together."

Beth looked at him wide-eyed. It was nice of him to try, but he wasn't helping much. Her stomach grumbled again.

"Here," said the guy named Daryl, pulling out his phone from his back pocket. "I know we got no service in here, but I go hunting and got lots of pictures of the woods, maybe lookin' at some will help calm you down a little."

He pushed his helmet and his bag of food to the other side of the elevator and moved to sit next to her.

"You mind?" He asked.

Beth shook her head.

The space was small, and their shoulders were pressed together, but Beth actually felt a little bit better at the contact. Daryl was warm – she suddenly realized that she hadn't brought any kind of jacket.

He pulled up his photo albums and selected the first of what looked like hundreds of pictures of the Georgian woods. He handed her his phone.

"Feel free to go through 'em if it helps."

Beth turned her head to look at him and gave him a small smile. It actually did help – a lot. He took beautiful photographs, most of them were of different part of the woods, but some were close-ups of certain plants and animals. He had talent.

"You go out into the woods a lot?" Beth asked him.

"When I got time, yeah,' he responded, nodding at her. "Usually just long weekends, 'cuz I work so much, I don't get a lotta time off. Used to hunt game with my brother and my old man, still like to do it by myself sometimes."

Beth realized that talking to him was soothing her nerves. So she pushed on.

"Are you a professional photographer? These pictures are beautiful."

His face turned a little red at that, and he shook his head. "Nah, just like takin' pictures is all."

They were silent for a few minutes as she flicked through his pictures, each one more stunning than the next. He interjected sometimes to give her the name of whatever she was looking at – sometimes it was a bird, sometimes a plant. But a sense of calm had washed over Beth, and she knew it had everything to do with the attractive guy sitting next to her who knew the names of every shrub in the forest.

"Just realized, I dunno your name," he said to her suddenly, after a few minutes of silence.

"It's Beth," she responded, rolling her head side to side to stretch out her neck. Looking down at a phone for so long had started to cause some cramping.

"I don't mean to seem rude or nothin', but what's a girl like you doin' alone in an elevator on a Saturday night?"

Beth actually laughed out loud. She decided she liked Daryl. A lot. He was gutsy.

"I was on a blind date," she explained, making a face. He grinned at her.

"Not that good, huh?"

"No! It was terrible! I got all dressed up for nothin'! He didn't even really remember my name by the end of it!"

"Who doesn't remember a pretty name like Beth?"

Beth blushed furiously. "Exactly," she said with a little grin. "I was just getting' ready to go home, and then of course this had to happen, just to make my night even better." Beth's stomach rumbled again. She could feel herself turning redder in embarrassment.

"Y'know, I was takin' some o' this food home for dinner, but I don't mind sharing it with you if you're hungry and all…" Daryl nodded at his plastic to-go bag.

"Oh, no you really don't have to do that!" But Beth's stomach rumbled again, as if daring her to take up his offer. Daryl was still grinning at her. He reached over and unwrapped his carton of food – some sort of pesto pasta. He handed her a plastic fork, keeping the knife for himself.

"As long as you don't mind sharin', I haven't eaten since lunch."

Beth nodded, giving in. "Thanks."

"No problem," he responded. "It's good stuff, my buddy Tyreese makes it for all of us who work in the kitchens on Saturday nights. He's one of the head chefs."

He was right – the pasta was delicious. She and Daryl practically shoveled it down in a matter of minutes. She couldn't help but laugh as she watched him stab pieces of pasta with his plastic knife to stick in his mouth. Her claustrophobia was almost all but forgotten.

"Man, this is takin' forever," Daryl said finally, after he'd impaled the last piece of pasta on his knife and stuck it in his mouth.

"Yeah, it is," Beth agreed. "I've never been stuck in an elevator before, though, so I dunno what the protocol is."

"Just gotta think of things to pass the time is all."

"We could play a game," Beth said mischievously. She wanted to know more about Daryl – he was so handsome, and definitely one of the sweetest guys she'd met in a long time. Maybe she could use this time stuck together in an elevator to her advantage. Daryl grinned back at her.

"Ever played that 'I Never' game?"

She nodded. "You go first!"

"Alright, but what are the stakes?"

She looked at him. "Hmm… if I win, you have to drive me home. 'Cuz I've never ridden on a motorcycle before."

"Aw that's cheatin,' you saw my helmet," Daryl responded in a low voice. "Hell, I'll take you home if you win or not. Don't wanna leave you stranded in the cold in the middle of Atlanta on a Saturday night."

She grinned at him. "And if you win?"

Daryl thought for a second. "If I win, I get to take you out to coffee tomorrow."

He said it so matter-of-factly, Beth didn't even have time to hesitate. "Deal."

They shook hands, each grinning at the other. It was a win-win situation, no matter what.

Daryl was about to open his mouth to start the game when suddenly there was a whirring sound, and the elevator jolted to a start. Beth had grabbed his hand in a panic, startled by the sudden movement. He squeezed her hand back. "Saved by the bell," he said with a reassuring smile. "I was 'bout to kick your ass at this game."

Beth grinned to herself, keeping her hand in Daryl's for a moment longer. It was just so nice and warm.

When they reached the lobby, Daryl stood up first, extending his arm to help Beth to her feet. She still had her heels off, and didn't quite know what to do with them – she certainly didn't want to have to put them back on.

She looked at them in her hand for a second before Daryl tapped her on the shoulder.

"My ride's only across the street, but you probably don't wanna be barefoot. Here, hop on."

He crouched down, as if expecting her to jump on his back.

Beth giggled. People in the lobby were staring at them – they were an unlikely pair.

"Daryl, what are you doing?"

"Not gonna make you put those shoes on just to walk across the street," he responded. "You can piggyback it over to my bike."

Beth couldn't exactly argue with his logic, but she also couldn't stop herself from blushing when she jumped up on his back. He let out a huff.

"You're heavier than you look," he said with a grin.

"Careful there," she teased, "I can probably still get in a good kick from right here."

They teased each other all the way to Daryl's bike. Then Beth found herself getting nervous. She'd never been on a motorcycle before – wasn't it supposed to be dangerous?

"Here, you wear the helmet, I've only got one," Daryl said, placing the huge thing over her head and grinning at her. "Makes you look like an alien."

She laughed. He swung himself onto his bike and started the engine. "Hop on."

Beth sat down behind him cautiously, unsure of what to do.

"Might wanna hold on," she heard Daryl say in front of her. She wrapped her arms around his torso, glad he couldn't see the blush working its way up her neck. She could feel how muscular he was, even through his shirt. How had this happened? An hour ago, she had been resigned to having a terrible night, yet now she was here, sitting behind an awesome guy on a motorcycle, ready to ride off into the night. What had she done for karma to bless her like this?

It only took about 10 minutes to reach her apartment. She directed him the whole way, shouting over the wind.

When they arrived, Daryl helped her pull the giant helmet off her head. He even reached out and pushed a few strands of stray hair out of her eyes. She couldn't stop grinning at him. She felt somehow like she'd known him a long time. She'd have to remember to thank Tara – if she hadn't been forced on that stupid blind date, none of this would have ever happened.

Daryl walked her silently up to her front door. He actually seemed a little nervous – it was cute.

"So…pick me up tomorrow at ten?"

Daryl raised his eyebrows questioningly, confused for a minute.

"For coffee… who needs blind dates when you can do the real thing?"

He looked dumbfounded – as if he hadn't expected that she would actually want to go out to coffee with him.

Beth laughed at his pleased expression, and before he had a chance to respond, she stood quickly on her toes and placed a light kiss right on his mouth.

"See you tomorrow, Daryl. Thanks for everything!"

And she left him there, standing on the front step, scratching his head and looking like he'd just won the lottery.


	2. Party

**Party AU**

Everyone was drunk, and Jimmy was staring at her from across the room. Again.

Beth couldn't believe her luck. _Of course_ she would accidentally have too many shots of tequila on the one night that they went to a party in Jimmy's neighborhood. She should have thought it through. But now here she was, trying to stay upright in her booted heels, surrounded by inebriated strangers. Even Maggie had abandoned her to go find Glenn somewhere in the house.

Not that Beth missed Jimmy at all – she had been the one to end it, but he had been…difficult about it. _He's just a big whiny baby_, she thought to herself with a giggle and a hiccup. But then she noticed him leering at her drunkenly from across the room, and quickly stopped smiling. It was actually kinda creepy.

Beth felt a hand on her shoulder and spun on the spot, making herself dizzy.

Strong hands caught her as she started to fall, straightening her back up and keeping a steady grasp on one of her arms to help her balance. She got a glimpse of piercing blue eyes peeking out behind a tangle of dark, messy hair. Oh wow.

"'M sorry, it's just that I wanted to tell you…that guy over there's been lookin' at you funny all night. And not in a nice way… didn't mean to make ya fall."

Beth focused on steadying her breath – this guy was _gorgeous_. He was probably a little older than her, and certainly scruffy, but something about him made her feel calm. He was dressed all in black, a leather jacket over his wide shoulders, and a cigarette resting behind one ear. He was sexy, and Beth had to physically stop herself from staring open mouthed.

"Oh…uh..thanks," she said, clearing her thoughts. _Keep it PG, Beth_, she thought to herself. She had to remember her filter when she was drunk – especially around someone this good looking.

"Yeah, I noticed. That's actually my ex-boyfriend. He's had trouble letting go…"

Beth blushed furiously, even though there really wasn't any reason to be embarrassed.

"Oh," the hot stranger said in a low voice, looking over her shoulder to something behind her, "well then, you should probably know, he's comin' over here. Do you want some privacy?"

Beth shook her head frantically. No, she definitely didn't want to be left alone with Jimmy. Not ever. Not after the way he had handled their breakup. "Please stay…"

But she noticed her new attractive friend straighten up, so she turned around to face Jimmy, who was standing way too close for comfort. Loud music was blaring all around them, but Beth could feel herself sobering up at the sight of her ex.

"Hey Beth, is this guy bothering you?"

Beth heard her new friend make a deep growling noise. It was actually kinda hot.

"Oh… hi Jimmy," she said, turning red. Her mind was running a mile a minute, trying to figure out how to get out of having a conversation with him. So, pretending as though she hadn't noticed him staring at her for the past 20 minutes, Beth said, "no, this is actually –"

" – Daryl Dixon, Beth's new boyfriend," Daryl cut her off, extending his hand out to Jimmy's to shake. He took a protective step closer to Beth. She could practically feel herself turning a deeper shade of red.

Jimmy had turned a bright, angry red to rival her. _Uh oh_, Beth thought. He was really drunk, and that was never good news.

"_Wooooow_, really Beth? Already? It's only been, what, like a month? I bet you couldn't keep your pants on, could you? What a _whore_."

Beth had opened her mouth angrily to retort, but was saved the trouble when Daryl Dixon slammed his fist into Jimmy's face. She gasped. So did everyone around them.

Daryl was looking down at Jimmy who was now sprawled on the floor, clutching his nose in pain. It was bleeding. Someone in the crowd laughed.

"You best learn how to treat women with respect, boy, or you'll get more where that came from," he growled.

Jimmy scrambled to his feet and pushed past the crowd in the direction of the bathroom, his nose dripping on the carpet.

Daryl tapped Beth on the shoulder and nodded his head to the left. "C'mon Beth, let's get you some water."

He extended his arm, which she gratefully accepted. She was still _way_ too drunk to be walking around by herself – especially in these damn heels. She was shivering, too, suddenly realizing how stupid she had been to forget to bring a sweater. And she was in shock. She'd never witnessed anyone throw a punch before, much less over_her_.

They reached the kitchen, which was empty but for a few drunk people also looking for water. Daryl wordlessly shrugged off his jacket (revealing a dark green t-shirt) and placed it over Beth's cold shoulders. She smiled at him bashfully, and hopped up to sit on one of the many kitchen counters. Daryl turned and reached up into a cabinet to procure a glass, which he filled with water and handed to her. Beth raised her eyebrows.

"This your house?"

"Nah," he said with a shake of his head, "it's my brother Merle's. He throws a lotta parties, always invites too many people he doesn't know."

Beth turned red again – she didn't know Merle. In fact, the only reason she had come at all was to hang out with her sister, who was nowhere to be seen. And then she had had too many shots of tequila. Beth felt silly – here she was, drunk, and being taken care of by a strange man who had just punched her ex boyfriend in the face to defend her honor. It felt like a soap opera.

"M'sorry if I scared you," Daryl added slowly, looking up at her, stopping her breath. "Sometimes I just can't stop myself. Guys like that piss me off."

Beth shook her head. "It's okay. He had it comin.' Next time, I think I can take care of myself, though."

She didn't want this attractive stranger to think she was totally helpless.

"Fair enough," he responded, a small grin settling on his handsome face. "I'm Daryl Dixon, by the way."

Beth grinned at him and stuck out her hand, "Beth Greene."

They shook hands, staring at each other, each one sizing the other one up. Beth couldn't help but notice how muscular this guy's arms were. Oh, God, she really was drunk if she was letting herself get distracted by muscles.

Before she could say another word, a giggling Maggie strolled into the kitchen, her hand clasped around Glenn's.

"Beth! There you are! Been looking for you everywhere! Someone said you started a fight?!"

"Nah, that was me," Daryl said quickly, looking at the floor.

Maggie looked at him, and then back at Beth, who was now sitting on a counter and fiddling with a pen she had found in an open drawer next to her.

"Beth, who's this?"

There was an awkward pause.

"This is Daryl, my new boyfriend," Beth responded, laughing suddenly. "He was defending my honor."

Maggie gave her a confused grin. "Beth, either I'm really drunk, or you're really drunk because you're not making _any_ sense."

"You're both really drunk," Glenn said, looking back and forth at the two of them with an amused expression. "And it's time I drive you guys home. Before anyone gets a chance to start another fight…"

"Beth's staying at my place tonight," Maggie responded, already turning to leave, dragging Glenn with her. "C'mon Bethy!"

Beth felt her face get hot at the sound of her stupid nickname. She turned to Daryl, who had remained quiet, watching her shyly.

"I gotta go," Beth said. "Thanks for sticking up for me."

"Anytime," he responded, a small smile appearing on his face for a split-second. Beth almost thought she had imagined it.

Beth turned to walk out the kitchen door before stopping and turning around again. She was still shaky on her legs, but she felt confident for the first time tonight. She pranced right back over to Daryl and grabbed his hand, opening it wide, palm down

"This is my number," she said as she scrawled the digits on the back of his hand, in what she hoped was neat writing. "Gimme a call sometime, maybe I can return the favor and punch one of your ex-girlfriends or something…"

Beth heard him chuckle at her stupid attempt at a joke. Then without thinking, she stood up on the tips of her toes and pressed her lips to his cheek. His beard was rough beneath her, but he smelled like pine trees and aftershave. It was nice.

Before turning to leave, she caught Daryl smiling at her again, this time with his hand on his cheek, his face bright red. As if he couldn't believe she had kissed him at all.

Then she scurried out of the room before her bravery ran out on her.

When Beth woke up the next morning, the first thing she noticed was her painful hangover. The second thing was her phone – she had eight new messages from an unknown number:

2:30 am: {i hope you made it home ok}

9:30 am: {gimme a call when u wake up, if u want}

9:30 am: {this is daryl by the way}

9:30 am: {the guy from last night}

9:35 am: {i just realized u might not remember me}

9:35 am: {i punched your ex}

9:35 am: {it was mostly an accident}

9:40 am: {im bad at this sorry}

Beth let out a chuckle. His awkwardness was cute. She unplugged her phone from the wall, threw the covers over her head (complete darkness helped soothe her headache), and dialed his number, a grin plastered on her face. Maybe last night hadn't been a complete waste after all.


	3. Shirts

They had only started living together for two weeks - and so far it had been pure bliss. Waking up next to Daryl - spending lazy afternoons together, watching TV together wrapped up on the couch, making dinner for each other - it felt like paradise to Beth. The only problem left to solve were all of the boxes they still hadn't bothered to unpack. Living with each other caused a lot of distractions - they could barely keep their hands off one another, and this lead to a disregard of everything else they had to do. The unpacking process was probably going to take_months_ at this rate.

"Beth, this whole box just has white shirts in it…"

Beth looked up from her book and over at Daryl, who was staring confusedly into a rather large box he had just sliced open to unpack. She blushed. She really _did_ have a lot of white shirts. She liked clothes - the one luxury she afforded herself in life was having a cute (ever expanding) wardrobe.

"Yeah, I'll deal with those later," she said to him, still pink in the cheeks. "I need to iron 'em and re-fold 'em again and figure out where to put 'em."

Daryl scoffed. He bent down and picked up one of the shirts on the top - it still had a tag sticking out of it.

"Y'never even wore this one," he said, holding it up to look at it. He squinted at the tag. "Holy shit, Beth! You spent $30 on a plain white t-shirt?"

"It's _soft_," she said with emphasis, as if this explained her reasoning completely, "it seemed worth it at the time…"

"My shirt's soft too, but you can be damn sure I didn't spend no $30 on it, _and_ I actually wear it."

Beth took Daryl in. He was in a tight-fitting, plain white shirt - it looked great on him (but so did everything else he ever wore), and he'd probably spent no more that $5 dollars on it. (_As if Daryl Dixon would even care to remember where he had gotten his clothes to begin with_, she thought to herself.)

To be fair, Daryl was right - she didn't need to spend that kind of money on clothes - in fact she hadn't. Not in a long time. She was focused on other, more important things now. And of course Daryl knew that too, but he_loved_ to tease her.

"Alright," she replied with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Fine, I'll wear it then."

She nimbly stood up from their couch that she had been lounging on and pulled her current t-shirt up over her head. She saw Daryl actively trying not to let his mouth drop open. She hadn't been wearing a bra under her shirt - but he clearly hadn't noticed until now. The effect was spectacular - she had rendered Daryl speechless with surprise. She stalked over to him, smiled sweetly, gently tugged the t-shirt out of his hands, and slipped it over her head. She pulled at the tag, ripping it off, and tossed it to the side dramatically. Then she did a little spin for him.

"You win," she said, trying not to laugh at how wide his eyes had gotten.

"Hell," he said in a deep voice, "Maybe I should unpack the rest of this stuff for you, too."

It wasn't until later, as they lay tangled together on the floor, now surrounded by Beth's white shirts that she had willingly modeled for him (pant-less, as requested…), that the expensive shirt came up again. Beth had retrieved her other top from earlier, and sat up to begin taking the shirts into the bedroom to stuff into drawers. Daryl had pulled on what he believed to be his white shirt, and stood up to help.

Beth took one look at him and began to cackle.

"What?"

"Daryl, that's _my_ shirt. The $30 one."

He looked down at himself. "It is?"

She nodded, still laughing. It actually looked astoundingly good on him - the shirt had been an oversized, plain white t-shirt. On Daryl it wasn't over-sized, but actually fit him rather well. It didn't look like he was wearing a woman's shirt - but Beth recognized it as hers all the same.

He flushed red. "Well this is gonna sound stupid…but…"

Beth raised her eyebrows at him questioningly.

"Well," he said quietly, looking at the floor, "it _is_ really soft. And comfy. You were right…"

Beth's grin widened. "You keep it then."

Daryl looked up at her, with a grin to match hers. "Oh yeah?"

"Yeah," she replied. "It looks good on you, plus I obviously don't ever wear it."

Daryl looked down at himself again and let out a gruff laugh. "Alright, it's mine now. You can't get mad when I get it all dirty at the shop."

"Deal," she said. "But at least let me cut off the tag in the back…unless you want the other mechanics to get jealous of your new Brandy Melville t-shirt?"

"Brady who?"

Beth chuckled. Daryl was too damn cute sometimes. She walked over to him and took his face in her hands. "Nevermind," she said before planting a kiss on his mouth. "I've clearly fallen in love with a nutcase. A nutcase who looks better in my shirts than I do."

"Sure have," Daryl responded with a grin. "C'mon, let's put these things away before I decide to steal another one." He poked her in the rib. She giggled and swatted at him with one of the many white t-shirts.

And with that, he grabbed her by the waist, hoisted her over his shoulder, and tickled her all the way into their bedroom.


	4. First Date at the Safe Zone

**First Date at the Safe Zone**

The Alexandria Safe Zone wasn't huge, but it certainly wasn't small, either. When he first arrived, Daryl Dixon hadn't bothered to explore it much. He didn't care to see it – didn't care to meet new people, to integrate, to try. Beth was gone and with her had gone his entire livelihood.

But then he'd found her – or Aaron had. Daryl had gotten the flu that day of all days. But he would remember the moment forever. He would remember the shouting coming from the streets. He would remember how Carl (who was playing cards with Daryl in the bedroom to keep him company while he was sick) stood up and told him to wait here as he looked out the window. He would remember Carl's sharp intake of breath as he saw what was happening outside. He would remember the way Carl turned back to him, eyes as round as dinner plates, a smile stretching across his face. "We have to go outside, _now_."

He would remember his confusion, he would remember how difficult it was to get down the stairs – his body had been achy, the flu had done a number on him. Carl had supported him the whole way – but the boy was clearly anxious to get outside. Anxious to show him something.

He would remember stepping out into the blinding sunlight. He would remember how Rick was hugging someone small in front of him – he couldn't quite see who it was, but everyone was smiling. And then he would remember what quite literally stopped his heart from beating for a moment. As Rick stepped aside. It was her. Beth. Alive.

He would remember how she looked up at him and her mouth fell open in a silent gasp. How he was unable to move – but she moved for him, dropping her weapons and running at him so fast, she knocked them both to the ground when she landed – her arms flung around him, holding him tight. Her face pressed into his neck. Beth. Beth Greene, alive. Beth Greene breathing and laughing and crying into him. And he was laughing and crying right back. He remembered how they remained tangled up into each other, breathing together, hearing each other's hearts beating, until Maggie came screaming down the road. And then he had to let her go – but not for long.

And now Beth was back. She had been the one to nurse him back to health – she hadn't left his side since returning. And he wouldn't have it any other way.

They kept their silent connection – neither one mentioning what had almost happened in the funeral home – but neither one forgetting it, either. Beth didn't know how to bring it up without frightening Daryl. Daryl didn't know if Beth even remembered at all, if she even _wanted_ to be reminded.

Theirs was a skinny love – the kind sung about in slow, evocative songs. A kind of love that was shared by both parties, but unspoken – as both were too shy to admit it to the other. Too unsure about the other. But still, unable to stay away from each other – drawn inexplicably by invisible ties that had bound them since reuniting. The silence was a habit they couldn't seem to break. Not yet anyway.

And finally, Daryl had come to understand just how big Alexandria was. Beth had demanded a tour – but Daryl had nothing to show for it. He had barely left the house except to go outside the walls with Aaron.

So Beth and Daryl explored together – each making new discoveries at the same time. Daryl had been shocked to find out how many spare garages housed bike parts and helpful machinery. Beth had been delighted to find a library. It had been built by the Alexandrians – they had collected every book and piece of music they could find and compiled them all in one giant room. There was another thing Daryl would never forget – the look on Beth's face when she found a working CD player in the library. Alexandria had electricity – and Beth's eyes filled with tears as the room was filled with Patsy Cline's voice.

"I never thought I'd be able to listen to music again," she'd whispered, grabbing his arm as if he was her life support – her rock. Her foundation in this new reality. He could do nothing but stare at her, like a blind man who had suddenly found his vision once again.

And so one day (a month or so after her arrival), they found themselves in said library – all alone. Daryl had taken to cleaning his crossbow while sitting in a comfortable armchair. Beth would usually spend this time picking through stacks of CD's, occasionally making a happy noise when she found something she recognized. Sometimes she played a CD, other times she would find a book, plop down in the chair beside him, and begin to read aloud.

This particular afternoon was a rainy one. And a Sunday, no less. Sunday's were special days in the Safe Zone – everyone was given a rest from his or her weekly duties (besides the patrols, for safety reasons). It was the fourth Sunday Daryl had spent like this, with Beth in the library, cleaning his crossbow and watching her sift through music. He would be content to do this every Sunday for the rest of eternity.

"Hey Daryl?"

Beth had piped up from across the room as he'd been deep in thought. She looked especially beautiful today – the dim lights of the makeshift library made her eyes look bright and happy.

"Mhm?"

"Wanna do somethin' fun?"

He raised his eyebrows at her and sat up, curious.

"Well, I've been thinkin'…and maybe this is silly…but…"

She stopped for a moment, her cheeks turning pink. Daryl could feel his own face warming up – although there wasn't any real reason for it. She continued:

"…okay, I guess I just…I feel like I know you, like I've known you all my life. But then, as I've been going through these stacks of CD's and looking through books…I realized that I don't really know what you like. I mean, I know what you like – I could probably guess – but I don't know the little things. Like which of the books in this room is your favorite – or what CD's you've heard of, or if you even like reading."

Daryl stared at her – unsure of what she expected him to say.

Beth took a deep breath and kept going.

"I just figured it would be kinda fun if we each picked out a favorite CD and a favorite book for each other. So we get to know the little things better…it could be fun – we could make a night of it!"

Daryl actually liked this idea. He put his crossbow on the ground and moved to stand up – "alright, sounds good."

Beth beamed at him. "It's a date!"

Daryl froze. So did Beth. She clearly hadn't meant anything by it– she was just messing around – but the unspoken words and feelings between them filled the silence. They both stared at each other – sizing each other up, gauging reactions.

Then Daryl let the corner of his mouth turn up into a slight smile. "Sure is."

Beth opened her mouth to say something – then thought better of it and closed it again. She smiled widely at him. "Come and pick out a CD you like and we'll listen to your favorite song on it. Then it's my turn."

Daryl stalked over to a table covered in CD's. It didn't take long for him to find a Joan Jett album – he had always liked her. A few minutes later, "Bad Reputation" was blaring through the CD player. Daryl felt strange, sharing this with Beth. It was a good feeling, but he felt like a new door had opened – they weren't just friends who survived together anymore. They were sharing music, favorite songs, things that defined who they were on a much deeper level. And he liked it – a lot.

Next was Beth's song. She'd picked out an Aretha Franklin album – greatest hits. She sang along as "I Say A Little Prayer" filled the room, bopping her head to the beat. Daryl couldn't help but watch her.

Then something funny happened – they both reached for the same CD – a Stevie Nicks album.

"I guess, you get to pick the first song since it's technically your turn," Beth said to him with a sideways grin.

Daryl looked at the back of the CD case to find the song he was looking for. He'd been looking for a Fleetwood Mac album, but this had been the next best thing – and he did know a few of these songs, although not too well. He found one that he remembered liking when he had first heard it, and pressed play. It was "Leather and Lace" – a duet that Stevie Nicks had recorded with Don Henley in the 80's.

"Oh," Beth had said quietly, "this is the one I was gonna pick. It's my favorite..."

Daryl had forgotten how much he himself liked this song. But he also felt himself getting a little uncomfortable – this was a love song. He hadn't meant to pick a love song. It was just the two of them in this big room, listening to a pretty love song, and he didn't quite know what to do. So he shuffled awkwardly over to the chair from before and half-sat on the arm.

Beth started to sway and sing along to the lyrics, which she knew well. As he listened to the lyrics, he realized how much they seemed to mirror how he felt about her.

_"You in the moonlight_

_With your sleepy eyes_

_Could you ever love a man like me_

_And you were right_

_When I walked into your house_

_I knew I'd never want to leave_

_Sometimes I'm a strong man_

_Sometimes cold and scared_

_And sometimes I cry_

_But that time I saw you_

_I knew with you to light my nights_

_Somehow I'd get by"_

Beth was spinning now, slowly, with her arms outstretched and a smile on her upturned face. She looked like an angel – immaculate but for the few scars she had slashed across her complexion. But her scars were beautiful too, he thought. They were a part of her. Proof that she had made it – that she had fought to survive and find her way back.

And yet he still didn't know how to say it to her – to tell her what she meant to him. He didn't know what he was supposed to say – or what she wanted to hear. What if she didn't want to hear it at all? His mind was racing a mile a minute, so much so that he barely noticed when she sauntered up to him, grabbed both arms, and pulled him off of the chair and out on the floor to dance with her.

The song was almost over now. The chorus sang out once more, and Daryl felt Beth wrap her arms around his torso. So he reciprocated, and swayed back and forth with her to the sound of Stevie Nicks and the end of the song.

_"Lovers forever_

_Face to face_

_My city or mountains_

_Stay with me stay_

_I need you to love me_

_I need you today_

_Give to me your leather_

_Take from me_

_My lace"_

They continued to sway back and forth, even as the music stopped. It was like the world had stopped. There were no walkers, no apocalypse, there was nothing to fear. There was just Beth, and nice music, and swaying back and forth. Daryl had changed his mind – _this _was what he'd rather be doing every Sunday for eternity.

"I'm so happy I found you again," she said quietly, her head leaning against his shoulder. She fit perfectly there. Daryl hugged her tighter.

"Me too," he said in a low, quiet voice. And then: "Don't ever leave again."

She looked up at him and smiled. They had stopped swaying.

"Deal," she said. Her face seemed close – impossibly close. But Daryl panicked – he didn't know what to do. This had never been his life before.

Almost as if sensing his discomfort, Beth backed away. But she grabbed his hand and pulled him towards one of the couches. The moment had passed – but just barely.

"Sit there," she said shyly, "I'm gonna grab a book that I think you might like readin'. I saw it earlier and got real excited. It was one of my favorites when I was younger…"

She disappeared amongst the bookshelves momentarily, but Daryl could hear her humming the tune to "Leather and Lace."

She reappeared again, and moved towards the couch, clutching a purple book. Daryl watched her as if in slow-motion. The sway of her body as she walked, her hair throwing specks of light in every direction, the way she bit her lip when she got nervous. All of these things happened in an instant, but Daryl saw them as if he were watching a film. The best film he'd ever seen in his life. And then suddenly she was kneeling on the couch beside him, facing him nervously, her hands (and the book) in her lap.

"So, this is the first of a series – you've probably heard of it, but I thought it might be fun for you to read, and it's one of my very favorite books," she said, her eyes glancing at him nervously – as if getting him to read this book was the most important thing she'd ever done. " – It's a fantasy story, and I don't know if you like those, but it's really good I promise. But also, you don't have to read it if you don't wan – "

Daryl cut her off by leaning forward and placing his lips on hers. It was unexpected – even he hadn't known what he was about to do until he was doing it. But he couldn't take it any longer. He couldn't sit in the same room as Beth Greene, knowing full well that she was alive – that her heart was beating and her lungs were breathing and her eyes were sparkling – without kissing her. He'd wanted to do it for ages. He should have done it long ago. But for some reason, now was the time. Before he chickened out again.

And then he pulled away, fast. He didn't know if this was what Beth wanted. If _he_ was what she wanted.

She had her eyes closed, but her mouth was open – he had surprised her. Daryl waited, looking at her, unsure again. Waiting to be told that he had made a mistake. Of course he had made a mist-

But this time Beth cut off his thoughts as she launched herself onto him, straddling him there on the couch and pushing her mouth onto his hungrily. Suddenly her fingers were curling tightly through his hair, and Daryl was doing all he could to keep up. He pulled her closer, wrapping his arms around her, making sure he could feel her heart beat through his own chest.

Daryl had very little experience with women – but all of his doubts and fears vanished with this kiss. It was more than a kiss – it was an accumulation of everything they had been through. It was the result of months of torture, of sadness, and then after she appeared again, of waiting and second guessing. Weeks of stolen glances and reddening cheeks – of secret feelings and regret and relief mixed with profound feeling and desire and need. Of respect and life and love.

As he kissed Beth Greene, Daryl's mind went blank but for one thought. He had been wrong the last two times – _THIS _was what he wanted to do every Sunday for eternity. Every Monday too. And Tuesday. Every day. Forever. Kiss Beth Greene like it was the only thing he had been born to do.

After what seemed like a lifetime, they pulled apart – both gasping for breath. They stared at each other. Beth's eyes were luminous, beautiful above him. She bit her lip again and grinned. She leaned down and pressed her forehead against his, allowing her breath to settle. Daryl wanted to pinch himself – he wanted to be sure that he was really awake – that Beth had really just kissed him like that.

She had. And she would again. And he would kiss her back. Again. A lot. Forever. Daryl felt like maybe this was what Christmas morning to a little kid was supposed to feel like.

And then Beth giggled and pushed some of his long hair out of his eyes – all the while blushing furiously. She kissed him quickly on the nose and unhooked herself from him slowly. She grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him down with her to lay side by side on the wide couch. She curled herself against his chest, grabbed the book again and opened it.

"Chapter One." She paused and looked up at him questioningly. "You don't mind my readin' it to you, right?"

Daryl grinned down at her. He wrapped his arm around her. The couch was warm and cozy, and they had the rest of the evening to themselves. "Wouldn't have it any other way," he said, nestling down closer to her. She wrapped her legs around his. Everything was perfect.

Beth cleared her throat and began reading the first paragraph:

"Mr. And Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much. They were the last people you'd expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious, because they just didn't hold with such nonsense…"

**End**

**...**

_I've already gotten some really lovely reviews for my other stories and I just wanted to say, thanks guys! I'm glad you like my one-shots! Your reviews always give me a huge smile! More to come! I love writing short Bethyl fluff! (Also I'll happily take any short story requests or fluffy prompts if you have them!)_


	5. Cross

**Cross**

There had been a lot of suffering in Beth Greene's life, but there had been a lot of miracles too.

Yes, her father had struggled with alcoholism for years, but then, miraculously, he found the strength to go straight and never touch a drink again.

Yes, the world had ended and walkers ran rampant, but then, miraculously, Rick and his group had found them and helped them find their way in this new world.

Yes, they had lost the farm and spent weeks trying to survive, but then, miraculously, the prison had become their new home.

There was no miracle when her father died. He was just dead. Gone. Not even buried. And this had broken Beth. But she soldiered on.

And yes, she was separated from her family, from everyone she loved, and didn't know if they were alive. But then, miraculously, Daryl Dixon surprised her – helped her, befriended her, melted her in a way she didn't think possible anymore.

And yes, she had lost him – not once but twice. She had been taken from him, but he miraculously found her. And then she had been taken from him again, seemingly permanent this time, but then, miraculously, had survived a gunshot to the head.

Her final miracle – finding her way to Alexandria, had almost broken her again. She hadn't thought she would make it. She hadn't thought she would really ever see him again, see her family, find a real home again. She had almost given up – many times. But she pushed onward, always looking ahead, trying to plan her next move, tracking. But it hadn't felt like a miracle then. Surviving hadn't felt like a miracle at all, not until one day, unexpectedly, she arrived.

And suddenly she was sure it _had_ been a miracle after all. She was sure the moment she saw his face in the shocked crowd. The moment he violently pushed past bodies to get to her. The moment he ran at her like a blind man. The moment he reached her and held on to her for dear life. She knew it was a miracle because she could breathe again, smile again, melt again.

Life was good now. She had found a home again, found her sister, found Daryl. Found her family. She was a survivor. She had changed, and everyone saw it in her (although Daryl had known it all along).

But some days, still, she would wake up and feel just a little bit broken. Just a little bit damaged. Some days she would wake up and forget that there were always miracles. Some days Beth Greene was so tragically human, she couldn't keep from crying out in anguish at the things she had lost.

It didn't happen often – but it was also unavoidable. Because even the toughest of warriors can feel the slow thud of melancholy wrapped up in their hearts.

The little things usually hit her the most.

Today, it was the loss of her cross bracelet. She woke up to find it missing – gone. She hadn't known how long it had been gone for, or even when she had stopped thinking about it. But she woke up and realized it was lost forever. Her father had given her that bracelet – it was a reminder of him. And losing it – well losing it hurt. It hurt a lot. It hurt so much that Beth couldn't stop thinking about it, and about him. Hershel. She couldn't stop watching his death, over and over again in the back of her mind.

She went through her day rather mindlessly. Daryl was out on a run with Aaron, so she couldn't talk to him – not yet. He usually made her feel better – he had opened up to her long ago, and now there was nothing but warmth between them.

But today, Beth didn't have his comforting arms to run into and let herself be wrapped up in. She didn't have the low rumble of his voice to soothe her. She would have to wait until he returned – and the waiting was always the hardest.

Even without her own troubles clouding her mind, waiting was the hardest. Beth had always been warned by her mother about falling in love with a soldier. That it would lead to immense torment of the mind and soul. That watching the one she loved go to battle would be the most difficult part of her life. Her mother had been married once, before, to a soldier. And she had lost him. But then she'd found Hershel, and life was okay again.

Beth thought she had understood her mother's pain when she was younger. She now realized how ignorant she had been. She hadn't understood it at all, not until the first day Daryl had come to her to tell her it was time he started going on runs again. Not until he had kissed her on the forehead and said "see you soon." Not until she had spent the entirety of the next day unable to eat, to speak, to think. Not until she felt an immense relief wash over her when he returned, and she was able to function again.

After that, she often went with him. It was easier on them both. But sometimes…sometimes other things got in the way.

And so today Beth was upset. She had lost her bracelet, she couldn't stop thinking about her father who was gone, and couldn't stop worrying about the man she loved. When would he be back? How far did they go this time? What would they find?

The day went by in a hazy gloom. She was watching over Judith, who was running a fever. Rick was with her, Carl and Michonne stopped by too. But Beth was the best at caring for sick babies. It was a natural born talent of hers. So she tried to focus on keeping Judith healthy. Feeding her, giving her water, trying to get her to sleep. At one point, while everyone was out of the room, Beth found herself crying along with Judith. She couldn't help it – sometimes it just had to happen.

Until Maggie knocked on the doorframe. "Beth, they're back. I'll stay here with Judy."

And then Beth was sprinting as fast as she could towards the gates, tears – happy and sad blinding her vision. And then he was in front of her again and the world stopped spinning. And then they were melded together as one, lips, arms, even Beth's legs. Everything locked together, as close as they could get. This happened every time he returned – yet every time felt like the very first.

When she finally lowered herself to the ground and took a steady breath, he looked down at her in concern.

"Somethin's wrong."

He said it as a statement because he knew. Daryl Dixon always knew. He knew her better than she knew herself sometimes.

"I've been thinkin' about my dad a lot today."

So he hugged her again, and she let him stroke her hair. And then, with their arms around each other, they started to walk slowly back into the community.

"Hey," he said quietly, stopping as they reached the front of the house, "I made somethin' for you. Last night, I couldn't sleep so…"

And he pulled something out of his pocket.

It was a roughly carved wooden figure in the shape of a cross. He had bored a hole in the top of it and attached it to a white shoelace. As if he had read her mind. As if he had known all along what had been upsetting her all day.

"Last week I saw you didn't have that bracelet, figured maybe ya lost it. So I made a new one…"

And so she was reminded - little miracles kept happening – even when she thought she'd used them all up. And Daryl Dixon seemed to lead the miracle brigade.

She couldn't keep her eyes from welling up a little. She smiled widely for the first time all day.

"How did you notice," she said quietly, still shocked at how perceptive he was, "I didn't even realize it until today."

Daryl shrugged, and moved to tie the little cross around her wrist for her. "It's just my nature to notice stuff – s'why I'm good at trackin.'"

He looked up at her and wiped her happy tears away gently. "Besides, I notice everything about you, Beth Greene."

And as she stood on her tiptoes to kiss him, Beth Greene was reminded again of miracles. She had been blessed with so many in her life. But none greater than the miracle of Daryl Dixon, and all the love he so willingly had just for her.


	6. Bubbles

**Bubbles**

"But Daryl…we _need_ it."

Daryl squinted his eyes playfully in Beth Greene's direction. They were standing in the checkout line at a local convenience store, and Daryl had just spotted a purple bottle filled with some sort of bubble-bath concoction in their basket. Beth had clearly tried (and failed) to hide it under the toothpaste and shampoo they were buying.

"For what?" he asked her, amused.

"For….for…stuff," Beth didn't seem to have a good answer, "and things.."

Daryl let out a low snort of laughter on proceeded to stick the purple bottle next to the register. Their cashier was smiling at them, waiting.

"Go on," Daryl said, nodding at the cashier. "You heard the woman, she needs it."

"Thank you, my love," Beth said, grabbing his arm and standing on her toes to plant a kiss on his cheek.

Daryl felt his face grow a little warm. He still loved it when she called him that, even though it happened all the time. He had spent his whole life feeling the absence of love, until Beth found him. And finally he had understood what all the fuss was about. It was nice to be reminded that now he belonged to someone.

They were on the second week of their very first vacation together. It was the first vacation Daryl had ever been on in his life. They had decided to do a road-trip of the United States – after Beth had discovered that he'd never been out of Georgia before, she had started making plans immediately. They'd been together for about 8 months at this point, and the going was good. In fact, the going was _exceptional_. Daryl didn't think his life had ever been better than this.

This week, they had finally made it to the east coast. They had planned a month-long trip – Beth had the summer off because she worked at an elementary school, and Daryl had racked up enough vacation days at the shop to last a long time. They only brought a few things with them in their pickup truck – some clothes, a map, and too many CD's to count. "Any motel room will feel like a 5 star hotel with the right tunes," Beth had said to him when he'd raised his eyebrows at the stack of music she wanted to bring.

And she'd been right. She was always right.

On this particular night, they were staying at a Super 8 Motel in Cape Cod, with a rather beautiful view of the Bass River. They planned to stay a few nights, and had decided to go out to pick up some dinner to eat by the river. On the way back to the motel, Daryl had made the rational choice to pick up some essentials from a local convenience store – the motel only stocked crappy, tiny bottles of shampoo.

When they finally got back to their room, Beth wandered inside to put away their new things, while Daryl remained outside for a quick smoke. The sun had finally set, and the cool air on the coast soothed him.

Yesterday afternoon, when they had arrived, Daryl finally got to see the ocean. It had been a long time since Daryl been to a beach. He had a faint memory of running through sand with Merle as a small child, but it had been ages ago, and he'd never gone since.

He loved the beach. He decided it the minute he saw the water on the horizon. Beth had been sitting next to him in their truck when they first spotted the coast, and upon seeing his face, she'd whipped out her phone and instantly started filming his reaction.

"So you can see how perfect you are when you're happy," she'd explained.

When they finally arrived, the beach was empty – the sun was going down, and they had parked at the side of the road to look at the view. And then, Beth started pulling off her clothes.

"What – "

"C'mon, let's go swimming!"

And suddenly Beth Greene was stark naked and running towards the water, laughing maniacally. Daryl followed after her as quickly as he could. It was the perfect evening. The water was warm, Beth wouldn't stop laughing, and they'd ended the night tangled up together in the back of the truck, still naked but for a blanket, and looking at the stars. Daryl knew a lot about the stars, and he pointed out the different constellations to Beth, who was snuggled up next to him.

As Daryl put out the stub of his cigarette, he decided that last night had been the best night of the trip so far.

He turned to walk into their room, and stopped when he got inside. The smell of lavender was everywhere, and the bathroom light was on. He moved towards the bathroom and opened the door, poking his head inside. And suddenly he was roaring with laughter.

Beth Greene was sitting in the tiny little tub. She had filled it with water and bubble bath, and the bubbles were spilling over the edge. Then, she'd promptly covered herself in bubbles, making a makeshift bubble hat and beard to match. She'd covered her chest in a bubble-bikini.

She grinned at him and scooped up more bubbles, trying to make a bubble mustache for herself. "Hey, babe, how do you like my new look?"

"Hmm," he responded with a grin, "it's good, but you're missin' somethin."

He walked over to the tub and sat down on the edge. He reached over and scooped up a handful of bubbles. Then he placed spot on her nose, and dumped the rest on the top of her head, shaping it to make it look like a cone.

"There ya go," he said with a laugh, "now you're perfect."

Suddenly, Beth got a mischievously glint in her eye.

"Your turn!" she exclaimed, before grabbing him by the wrist and tugging him straight into the tub with her, clothes and all. Daryl spluttered as he fell ass-first into the soapy water – causing a huge splash that soaked the floor.

Beth was laughing hysterically, there were actual tears pooling in her eyes.

"You should see your face," she managed to choke out through her laughter, "that was the best thing I think I've ever se—"

But Daryl cut her off by splashing a huge amount of water at her, effectively wiping off her bubble-beard.

Beth was still for a moment. They locked eyes and grinned at the same time. Suddenly the bathroom was filled with playful shouting as they threw bubbles at each other and splashed each other as fast as they could. Beth was winning – Daryl's entire body was now drenched, including the sopping hair that was now matted to his head.

The bath really was too small to fit the both of them, and after about 5 minutes of their splash-war, there were more suds in the tub than there was actual water. The water had ended up _all over_ the floor.

"We're gonna hafta clean that up…" Daryl noted casually, nodding at the floor.

Beth grinned and plopped a heaping pile of bubbles on his head. "We'll worry about that later…"

And then she was unbuttoning his soaking shirt and pulling it off him, while simultaneously straddling him in the tiny tub. Her mouth was on his in an instant, and he forgot about the mess they had just made. He forgot about everything except Beth and how perfect she was, especially now, stark naked, covered in bubbles, and all his.

She was right about getting the bubble-bath mix. She was always right.

…

_I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who has favorited my stories, commented, or started following me! You guys are super sweet and I love hearing your feedback! Thank you so so much!_


	7. Matchmaker

**Matchmaking**

_(hey guys, quick note that this is a Bethyl AU in Carol's POV (as a friend of both Daryl and Beth). I got a request for a ficlet of Carol as a matchmaker, and I personally really like Carol and her friendship with Daryl, but if you don't, this might not be the fic for you! Just a heads up before you read, since I've come to learn that certain people are sensitive to this sort of thing... And if you're like me and really enjoy Carol and her brotp with Daryl, I hope you enjoy this one)_

_..._

"You really just have to get out there again, I don't know what else to tell you. And Daryl is a really wonderful guy, I promise."

Carol was sitting on a bench with Beth Greene, who had just bitten into a sandwich. They were on a field trip – or, Sophia was, and Carol had volunteered to be one of the parent chaperones for the trip. Beth was her daughter's teacher, and the two had struck up an easy-going friendship over the past few months, often meeting to get lunch and hang out over coffee. Beth was slowly becoming one of Carol's best friends. She was just so sweet and caring.

Currently, they were sitting in the courtyard of a museum with the rest of Sophia's class and a few other parents. It was lunch-time, and the kids were all chattering to each other happily in the sunny daylight. Carol smiled when she noticed her daughter handing half of her sandwich to a friend who clearly had forgotten to bring a lunch.

Beth chewed pensively for a minute. "You're right," she said. "I know you are, it's just so _hard_ to meet decent guys nowadays."

Carol let out a tinkering laugh. "You're telling _me."_

"Well," Beth responded, "if Daryl's so great, why don't _you_ date him?"

"Oh, God no," Carol replied, crinkling her nose, "that'd be like dating my brother."

Beth laughed. "Fair enough, maybe I'll give him a try…"

"I'm sure you two would like each other," Carol added nonchalantly, "he thinks you're real pretty…"

"What?!"

Carol realized her mistake. Oops.

Daryl had joined her a few times in the past when she drove to pick up Sophia from school. Her daughter loved Uncle Daryl, so he sometimes liked to surprise her at school. One of the first times he had ever come with her to pick up Sophia, Ms. Greene had been standing outside with some of the children who were waiting to be picked up.

Carol had been telling Daryl a particularly funny joke that she'd made up, and when he didn't laugh, she realized he hadn't been paying attention. He was too busy staring shamelessly at the pretty blonde teacher.

"Like what you see?" Carol had asked him in a wry voice, poking his shoulder. Daryl never stared at women – this was new.

"Hmm?" He'd responded, turning to look at her. Then he'd turned tomato red and looked at his feet. "Shut up."

"She's my friend you know," Carol said, "we could go talk to her for a minut—"

"No, oh man, please no."

Carol had laughed. Her best friend was a lot of things, but confident wasn't one of them. They'd have to work on that.

He'd opted to come with her to pick up Sophia a lot more often after that day, though. And Carol often found him looking around for Beth when he thought she couldn't see.

"I'm sorry but, how can he think I'm pretty?" Beth's voice brought Carol back to the moment. "I've never met him – unless – oh my god, Carol you haven't shown him pictures of me or anything have you? How long have you been planning to set us up, you devious minx?"

Carol smiled sheepishly.

"I wasn't supposed to tell you that," she said with a grin at her friend. "So when you meet him, don't mention I said anything."

Beth had her face in her hands, and it was bright red. She groaned. "Fine, I'll meet him. Can I at least see a picture of him or something? It's only fair."

Carol pulled out her phone and searched through her photos before finding a nice one of Daryl carrying Sophia on his shoulders. She passed it to Beth. Beth's mouth fell open.

"How is it," Beth said slowly, "that in this past 30 minutes of conversation, you failed to mention how attractive he is?" Beth looked around and leaned closer to Carol, lowering her voice to a whisper. "He's so hot! How is he single?!"

Carol smiled – things were looking up. "He's a little shy," she responded lightly. "And a little rough around the edges. But Daryl's a good guy, I've known him since we were kids."

Beth looked back down at the picture and smiled. "Sophia loves him, huh?"

Carol nodded.

"Well if he's good enough for Sophia, he must be pretty great." Beth took a deep breath and looked Carol in the eye. "I'll meet him if he wants to go out some time…you can tell him that, or give him my number."

….

"Ya did WHAT?"

Daryl Dixon was pacing back and forth across their living room in a panic. Six months ago, after Carol finally left her abusive, asshole of a husband, Daryl had offered up Merle's huge, empty room as a place for her and Sophia to stay. They were in the process now of looking for a place of their own, but Daryl was happy to let them stay as long as they needed to.

"I told Beth Greene that you two should go out and she said yes."

Daryl spluttered. Then he stopped walking, opened his mouth, thought better of it, closed it again, and kept walking around, shaking his head.

"Here," Carol said calmly, "I wrote her number down for you. So you can call her."

Daryl stared at the paper in her hand like it was a dog waiting to bite him. He inched forward slowly. Carol shook her hand in encouragement. He let out a huff and took it.

"Y'know I'm no good with women, Carol."

"You'll be good with this one," she responded with a smile. She really did think her two friends would hit it off – they were both gentle and loving people. She couldn't think of a better match. That, and she just _loved_ to play matchmaker. It was the romantic in her.

"Are you gonna marry Miss Greene?"

Sophia was suddenly in the room, her cheeks pink. She had clearly been eavesdropping. Carol let out a bark of laughter as Sophia walked further into the room.

Daryl whirled around in surprise.

"What? Oh, hey Soph…no I'm just gonna go to dinner with her is all."

"Aha!" Carol said, pumping a fist in the air, "so you _are_ asking her out! I knew you weren't a coward, Daryl Dixon. I'm proud of you, Pookie."

She was teasing him, and he knew it. He gave her a small grin. "Yeah, why the hell not."

Sophia piped up again:

"Miss Greene is my favorite teacher ever. She's nice, and she sings us songs on the guitar when we're good. And she always remembers my birthday."

"Oh yeah?" Daryl responded, crouching down so that he was eye to eye with the girl, "What about me, huh? I always remember your birthday too."

"Yeah, but she sings me happy birthday in front of the _whole class_, _and_ let's me do roll call."

"Alright little miss hard-to-please," Daryl said with a grin – he grabbed Sophia by the waist and hoisted her over his shoulder, tickling her side to make her laugh. She wiggled around and screamed happily. "Let's go give your favorite teacher a call."

And he carted Sophia out to the porch with him, pulling out his phone in the process.

A few minutes later, Sophia ran back inside for a snack, but Carol could hear Daryl speaking in a low voice to someone on the phone. She smiled to herself. Her plan was working.

Later, when he came back inside, she raised her eyebrows at him questioningly.

"Not that it's any of your business," Daryl teased her with a grin, "but I'm meetin' Ms. Greene for drinks tonight. And if it all goes wrong, you're the one I'm gonna blame."

Carol was delighted.

"It'll be great. She'll love you."

…..

That night, Carol decided to stay up later than usual and wait for Daryl to get home. She wanted to hear all about his night. Sophia had helped Daryl pick out something to wear, and then fell promptly asleep as soon as he'd gone. Carol made her way back out to the living room, poured herself a glass of wine, and settled down with a good Kurt Vonnegut book.

At around midnight, she heard the keys turning in the lock, and sat up excitedly. Daryl's footsteps grew louder as he walked into the room and ruffled his hair. He was smiling to himself. He noticed Carol.

"Oh hey, figured you'd be asleep."

"I wanted to hear about your date," she replied with an excited grin.

His eyes were wide and he gave her one of the biggest grins she'd ever seen.

"Beth Greene is perfect."

Carol cheered quietly. Then she waved her hand at him. "Aaand?"

"Aaand," Daryl replied with another grin, "I'm meetin' her tomorrow for dinner an' a movie. And I'm real excited about it."

Daryl Dixon didn't share his feelings often. Carol was beside herself with glee. She'd been trying to find someone for him for _years_.

"Does this make me your wingman?" She asked him with a snicker.

"Makes you the best wingman ever," he replied, giving her a high five when she reached out her hand for one. "I'm goin' to bed."

"I wanna hear all about it tomorrow!" Carol called after him as he ruffled his hair again and shuffled down the hallway to his own room.

"Yeah yeah," he said, before closing his door.

Carol closed her book and moved to stand up – it was time for her to try and get some sleep too. Suddenly, her phone buzzed in her pocket. She pulled it out curiously.

It read:

12:14 am, Beth G. {OH MY GOD YOU WERE RIGHT, HE'S SO FUNNY!}

12:14 am, Beth G. {AND SWEET!}

12:15 am, Beth G. {and awkward in the most adorable way}

12:15 am, Beth G. {we have a date tomorrow and I'm so excited I can't sleep, what should I wear?}

12:16 am, Beth G. {OOPS is that the time? I'll call u tomorrow!}

12:16 am, Beth G. {Thanks :D}

12:17 am, Beth G. {IOU big time! Lunch on me, name the day!}

Carol sent back a quick "can't wait to hear about it tomorrow" message and then turned her phone off. She was so proud of herself.

Hell, now she could hang out with two of her favorite people at the same time. It was a win-win-win.


End file.
